As a smoker, you might smoke some cigarettes to wake yourself
up (eg the first one in the morning) and others to help you relax or calm
yourself down when stressed or bored.

Although nicotine is primarily a stimulant drug, it works differently in different areas of the brain. For example, it soothes the limbic system, one of our most important emotional centres.

Nicotine and dependency

Nicotine is an addictive substance, which means your body gets
used to nicotine and comes to need a certain level to function normally each
day.

Any less than this dose and you start to feel snappy and on edge and get an urge to smoke.

Few smokers start on 20 a day, but increase their habit over
time.

The usual pattern is to find smoking unpleasant at first, but the body
and brain quickly adapt and you start to experience its enjoyable qualities.

You will then find you need to smoke more to feel these effects.

Further into
your addiction, you will smoke to avoid going into withdrawal between
cigarettes.

Nicotine is one of the most dependency-inducing drugs. Even the
good feelings you attribute to smoking, ie improved concentration, are really
due to relief of the withdrawal effects that come on between
cigarettes.

Although people's dependency on nicotine varies widely, once you
become 'hooked', nicotine is so addictive that if you start smoking again after
a period of quitting, you quickly escalate up to your original habit again very rapidly – even
it's been years since your last puff.

It's also why regular smokers can't 'become' social smokers,
because as your body adjusts to nicotine, it will need more.

Withdrawal symptoms and nicotine

A smoker's nervous system becomes accustomed to functioning with
nicotine.

When you stop smoking, the reduced nicotine intake will disturb
the balance of the central nervous system, causing withdrawal symptoms.

Fortunately, the majority of these symptoms tend to disappear
after a few of weeks.

Some people may experience cravings, concentration
problems and an increased appetite over a longer time period.

Depression after quitting

Many studies have found a link between depression and smoking,
but there's no consensus on why this is so.

Some suggest it's the long-term
effect of nicotine on the brain that causes depression, others that it's the
same genes and environmental factors that predispose a person to both mental
illness and smoking.

For some people, smoking is a coping mechanism – a form of
self-therapy.

A teenager who starts smoking may remain unaware of any tendency
towards depression or anxiety until they come to quit.

In this way, nicotine 'protects' against these conditions, which
means when you give up smoking, depression or anxiety can begin or worsen.

If
so, they shouldn't be seen as part of your withdrawal symptoms, and you should
seek medical help and treatment.

The materials in this web site are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor. The web site does not have answers to all problems. Answers to specific problems may not apply to everyone. If you notice medical symptoms or feel ill, you should consult your doctor - for further information see our Terms and conditions.